GCM/AES MACsec (IEEE 802.1AE) and FC-SP Cores
GCM1/GCM2/GCM3

General Description

Key Features

Implementation
of the new LAN security standard 802.1ae (MACSec) requires
the NIST standard AES cipher in the GCM mode for encryption
and message authentication (AES-GCM). The GCM1 AES core is tuned
for 802.1ae applications at the data rates of 1 Gbps
and higher. The GCM2 family of cores is targeted
towards high performance applications with high-end
cores supporting data rates in excess of 70 Gbps and
ability to parallelize to achieve even higher
throughput. GCM3 is similar to GCM2, but supports AES
key lengths up to 256 bits.

Cores contain the base AES core AES1
and are available for immediate licensing.

The design is fully synchronous and available in both
source and netlist form.

Small size: From
25,000 ASIC gates at 1 Gbps and above data speeds
(at throughput of 6.4 bits per clock)

The cores are designed for flow-through operation. GCM-AES key
and nonce material precedes the frame in the flow of data.
GCM cores support encryption and decryption modes.

Implementation Results

Area Utilization and Performance

Representative area/resources figures are shown
below.

Core

Technology

Area / Resources

Frequency

Throughput

GCM1

TSMC 0.13 µ LV

30,707 gates

250 MHz

3.2 Gbps

GCM1

TSMC 0.13 µ LV

40,335 gates

500 MHz

6.4 Gbps

GCM1

TSMC 0.09 µ LV

49,633 gates

824 MHz

10.5 Gbps

GCM3-64

TSMC 0.09 µ LV

136,582 gates

410 MHz

26 Gbps

Export Permits

US Bureau of Industry and Security has assigned
the export control classification number 5E002 to our AES
core. The core is eligible for the license exception ENC
under section 740.17(A) and (B)(1) of the export
administration regulations. See the
licensing basics page,
for links to US government sites and more details.